The Tennessee Titans (0-1) travel to face the reigning AFC East champion Buffalo Bills (1-0) this week on Monday Night Football. Kickoff at Highmark Stadium (71,621) is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. EDT/6:15 p.m. CDT on Monday, Sept. 19.
This is the fifth consecutive season in which Titans and Bills have met, the third consecutive season in which they have played in primetime, and the second straight year they have been featured on Monday Night Football. The Titans won the last two primetime matchups, including a Tuesday night contest in 2020 and their 2021 Monday night clash, each of which was played in Nashville.
This is the 50th all-time contest between the organizations, two charter members of the American Football League. The Titans lead the all-time series 30-19, which includes a 2-1 advantage for the Bills in the postseason.
THE BROADCAST
ESPN will broadcast the game to a national audience, while the telecast also can be seen locally in Nashville on WZTV Fox 17. The broadcast team includes play-by-play announcer Steve Levy, analysts Louis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky, and reporter Laura Rutledge.
Fans in Nashville can stream live Titans games with the newly-launched NFL+ subscription service, which offers access to all local games and all primetime games on phones and tablets, live local and national audio for every NFL game, and more.
The Titans Radio Network and Nashville flagship 104.5 The Zone carry all Titans games across the Mid-South with the "Voice of the Titans" Mike Keith, analyst Dave McGinnis, sideline reporter Amie Wells and gameday host Rhett Bryan.
Additionally, Westwood One Sports will broadcast the game to a national radio audience. Play-by-play announcer Tom McCarthy and analyst Ross Tucker have the call.
TITANS LOOK TO REBOUND AFTER ONE-POINT LOSS
The Titans opened the season last week at home against the New York Giants. They never trailed until late in the fourth quarter, when Giants running back Saquon Barkley scored on a two-point conversion to put his team ahead 21-20. A last-minute drive by the Titans came up empty as a 47-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left as time expired.
Quarterback Ryan Tannehill passed for 266 yards and a pair of touchdowns, finishing with a 106.4 passer rating. Both of his touchdown tosses went to running back Dontrell Hilliard.
The Titans defense totaled five sacks and two takeaways. Defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons had two sacks, including a strip-sack, while second-year outside linebacker Rashad Weaver notched his first two career sacks.
A total of eight rookies played for the Titans, including a pair of starters in cornerback Roger McCreary and right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere. Three other rookies combined for a total of 10 receptions for 132 yards. Fifth-round wide receiver Kyle Philips led the team with six catches for 66 yards, while first-rounder Treylon Burks had three receptions for 55 yards. Tight end Chig Okonkwo added 11 yards on one catch.
THE BILLS
The Bills have extended time to prepare for their home opener against the Titans. They launched their season last Thursday night in Los Angeles and earned a convincing 31-10 win against the Rams.
Quarterback Josh Allen is in his fifth season since being selected by the Bills with the seventh pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. In 2021, he passed for 4,407 yards and 36 touchdowns and added six touchdowns on the ground. Last week at Los Angeles, he completed three touchdown passes and rushed for another score.
Led by head coach Sean McDermott, who is in his sixth season as head coach, the Bills are looking for their fourth consecutive playoff berth in 2022. Like the Titans, their three playoff appearances since 2019 include back-to-back division titles in the past two campaigns.
